


Waking Snow White and Other Reasons to Have a Panic Attack

by The Little MerBucky (blue_pointer)



Series: Lightning in a Bottle [3]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Anxiety Attacks, Bucky Barnes's Metal Arm, Bucky Gets a New Arm, Bucky Lives, Darryl never appreciated them, Eavesdropping, First find Bruce, M/M, My Squishy, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Pumpkins are love, Rhodey Is a Good Bro, Sam Wilson is a Gift, Sam Wilson professional psychologist, Science Bros, Tony-centric, crack Thor, guess who's not coming to dinner, history of stony, how to wake a bucky, the best bro, then panic, winteriron
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-11
Updated: 2017-06-11
Packaged: 2018-11-12 16:47:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11165952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blue_pointer/pseuds/The%20Little%20MerBucky
Summary: Having stolen the cryo pod from Wakanda, Tony is determined to wake Bucky and get him the help he needs. If nothing else, to spite Steve. With the help of Sam and a recently-returned Bruce, the plan is go. But what will happen if it's successful? Will he like the new arm Tony and Rhodey built for him? And can Thor wait that long to meet his pet Bucky for the first time?





	Waking Snow White and Other Reasons to Have a Panic Attack

There was someone in his bed. It wasn’t Steve--the smell was wrong. And then everything that had happened came rushing back to Tony. He wished he could have just gone back to sleep. 

“I was supposed to come here and convince you to give up the hostage,” a familiar voice said. “But the bed just looked so comfy.” 

“What--get out of my bed, Barton. Trust me, when you’re invited, you’ll know.” 

“Naps are better than conflict,” he said, burying his face in Tony’s down pillows. 

“Great, now I’m going to have to burn these sheets,” Tony muttered, climbing out of bed. “Coffee,” he told the automatic machine in the corner. 

“Thanks,” Clint said. “Sounds great.” 

“It’s not for you, traitor!” Tony snapped. He knew the best answer was to ignore Clint. No doubt he’d only come to escort Wanda. Like those kids needed a chaperone. Tony was all for letting teens be teens--though, to be fair, Vision was much younger than that.

Then a thought struck him. What if Steve had sent Scarlet Elpheba to get his pal while Tony was distracted? He pelted down to the lab. But, no. Everything was as he’d left it. Except that Rhodey was sitting there staring at the life pod, almost like he was watching TV. “I hear the really good cartoons don’t come on until later,” he told him. 

“You really think we can help him?” Rhodey asked. 

“Of course. Are you honestly doubting me? Rude.” 

Rhodey turned around. “I’m serious, Tony. I know you can build him the best robot arm ever, but there’s a lot more wrong with this guy than a lost arm.” 

“I have an app for that,” Tony said, pulling out his phone. He pulled up a 3D mockup of the BARF. 

“Your bogus memory machine? Seriously?” 

“Why not?” Tony asked. “It’s meant to clear traumatic memories, and this guy clearly has bushels of ‘em.” 

“That’s the kind of stuff for mental health professionals, Tony. Not engineers.” 

“Fine.” Tony shrugged. “So we call in Wilson.” He seemed to actually care about the kid, anyway. Unlike his ‘here’s a razor blade, I respect you’ boyfriend. 

Rhodey looked dubious. “You really sure you wanna do this?” 

Tony shrugged. “Why not?” He had an eternity of solitude to look forward to. Why not keep busy? 

“Um. I don’t know, maybe because he killed your parents?” 

Tony cocked a hip, rested his hand on it. “Aren’t you supposed to be the voice of reason here? The ‘I got no time for hate’ cheerleader? Walking ‘support wounded veterans’ ad?” 

“Yeah, but--” Tony gestured at the case. Rhodey shook his head. “Okay, I just wanna make sure there’s no hidden agenda here.” 

“Oh, it’s not hidden,” Tony said. “I’m gonna fix Barnes so he can leave the nest and live a productive, happy life. And Steve can go fuck himself.” 

“You can’t make him hate Steve, Tony,” Rhodey pointed out. 

Tony shrugged. “No, but I can make him self-sufficient so that he doesn’t NEED Cap.” 

“What, like you?” 

Why did Rhodey always feel the need to personally attack him? “Maybe.” 

“Uh-huh. Well, for the record, I’m saying this is a bad idea.” 

“That’s fine, I don’t need your help,” Tony said, heading for the workbench to draw up schematics for Barnes’ new arm. 

Rhodey was quiet for a moment. “I didn’t say I wouldn’t help.” 

Tony smirked, vindicated. “Okay, then stop lazing around and let’s get to work. I feel like you’re uniquely qualified to tell me what someone would want in a replacement limb.”

 

*

 

The arm was a thing of beauty. Tony almost wanted to keep it for himself. But of course he could always make another one if it came down to it. In the time it had taken them to build it, Steve had sent Nat, Scott, and Sam to try to bargain with Tony for Bucky. Nat had been ignored. Scott had been tossed out on his ass, like any corporate spy from Pym. Sam had stayed. He agreed with Tony that Bucky shouldn’t have been allowed to go into cryo. 

“So why didn’t you stop him?” Tony had asked. 

“I wasn’t there at the time,” Sam had snarked back. “You got a time machine so I can go talk some sense into Steve?” 

“I’m the futurist,” Tony told him. “Not a miracle worker. You’d need more than a time machine to get through that thick skull.” 

“Ain’t that the truth,” Sam said. 

After that, they were cautious allies. 

Tony got used to chatting to the sleeping princess while he worked in the lab. It made him feel less lonely when Rhodey was elsewhere. Often he would wake from an accidental nap taken on the workbench to find pumpkins and gourds of all shapes and sizes piled around the life pod. Thor seemed to think his pet needed gifts. Or was it food? Tony really wasn’t sure. All he knew was that the big guy loved squash and he needed to share his passion with the people he loved. 

And Bruce came back. Tony felt a lot better with his science bro to bounce ideas off of. In spite of Bruce’s reticence to help. 

“I want nothing to do with this, Tony.” 

“Come on, Brucie. You know I’m not qualified to attach a bionic arm to all of his fascia and nerve endings.” 

“Why do you assume that I am?” Bruce’s voice jumped up twenty decibels. 

Okay, maybe he’d been approaching this the wrong way. “You’re the only one who can do it, cupcake. We’re counting on you.” 

“Who’s we?” Bruce wanted to know. 

Tony leaned on top of the life pod, giving Bruce the old Bambi eyes. Bucky bear’s eyes were closed, but Tony felt he made a pathetic enough sight as it was. “Fine!’ Bruce grumped. “I’ll help you wake him up, but that’s all.” 

“Thanks, daddy,” Tony bounced on the balls of his feet. “I knew you’d get me that pony for Christmas if I just asked enough times.” 

“You are sick,” Bruce told him. “Seriously, you need help.” But Tony knew that was just his way of reluctantly agreeing. And the agreeing was the important part. 

 

*

 

The day they woke Barnes, Tony was all jitters. Why, he wasn’t sure. It wasn’t as if everything could go wrong. Thor was on cloud 9, as if his mayonnaise jar caterpillar were turning into a butterfly. “I’m so excited!” he kept shouting. He really needed to take a chill pill. Maybe Tony did, too. “When he wakes, I shall call him Squishy, and he shall be mine, and he shall be my Squishy,” Thor announced, beaming. 

“Um.” Tony wasn’t sure how to respond. “Hold that thought, big guy.” Tony was having second thoughts. “This is a good idea, right?” he asked Sam for reassurance.

Sam looked him up and down, taking in Tony’s extreme anxiety. “Yeah, man. It’s a good idea.” 

“Okay,” Tony said. “Just checking.” 

The faster Bucky’s heart rate got, the more nervous Tony became. By the time he got back up to a sleeping heart rate, Tony was nearly through the roof.

“Calm down, Tony.” That was hilarious coming from Bruce. “You look like you’re about to deliver a baby.” But in a way, he was. Somewhat by mistake and mostly out of spite, Tony had managed to take complete responsibility for a human life. And he didn’t like it. He was way too irresponsible for that.

Then Bucky started to wake up, and Tony was bent double, head between his knees, breathing into a paper bag. “Take it easy, man,” Sam told him. “We may need your brain on this. Calm and collected.” 

“Calm...collected,” Tony wheezed. Sure. Like a fire alarm at a Jonas Brothers’ concert. 

But it was good Sam had talked him down, because it meant Tony was looking into the case when the patient’s ice blue eyes finally fluttered open. Barnes squinted, looked confused. “Is it safe to pull up the glass?” Tony asked Bruce. 

“It should be.” Tony was more confident in Bruce’s ability than he was. Bruce was a perfectionist, constantly doubting his final result, so he was a terrible judge of his own work. Tony hit the button to slide back the glass. Bucky just lay there, blinking. “It may be a few minutes before his eyesight returns,” Bruce said. “Senses come back slowly from a hibernation state.”

“You mean he won’t know if I do this?” Tony reached in and poked him in the side. He couldn’t help himself. Like a kid at Christmas, he’d waited so long to see what was inside the wrapped box. 

He felt bad, though, when Barnes startled and shivered, teeth chattering. 

“Why are you such a child?” Bruce wanted to know.

“You said he couldn’t feel anything yet!” Tony whined. 

“Why’re you so eager to touch him?” Sam asked, suspicious. 

“I’m not, sweetcheeks,” Tony lied. “I was just curious.”

“Uh-huh.” Sam didn’t seem to buy it. 

“May I squish him?” Thor asked, looming over the pod, elated. 

“Not quite yet, big guy,” Sam told him. 

Bruce just looked at Thor as though he’d lost his marbles. “You know what a teddy bear is...right?” 

“Indeed!” Thor beamed. He gestured at Bucky. “He shall be my Squishy.” 

Bruce’s eyes narrowed. “Okay, that’s not what it is.”  But everyone went silent as Bucky began to cough. “Let’s tip him forward,” Bruce said, afraid he might strangle on his own vomit if things went south. 

Sam grabbed his shoulders and Tony cupped the back of his head while Thor tore off the restraining strap. “Why did they bind him?” Thor asked. “Hibernating bears do not need to be fastened in place.”  

“That’s a good question, big fella,” Tony said. “Makes you wonder just what they were doing in that lab.” 

“It does?” Thor asked. 

“It does,” Tony nodded.

“Very edifying.” No one seemed to have noticed Bucky was done coughing and was now staring up at all of them. 

“Okay, everybody back off a minute,” Sam warned, as though Barnes were a rattlesnake that might strike at any moment. He stayed where he was, but he let go of Bucky’s shoulders. “Hey, T-1000. You remember who I am?” 

“You’re Sam,” Bucky said, as if speaking after a stroke. He seemed to have a difficult time moving his lips and tongue. Tony found himself oddly fascinated with them. 

“That’s right, man.” Sam smiled. “I never got to say goodbye the last time. Thought I’d wake you up a minute to have a little talk.” 

“Where’s Steve?” he managed to ask after great effort. Tony immediately started to regret this whole thing. Of course he would ask where Cap was first thing. Of course. They were like rhoid Romeo and Juliet. 

“He’s not here,” Sam said. “Is that okay?” 

Bucky made an effort to nod. Clearly his motor control was still weak. “S-safe,” he said. 

“What’s that?” 

“Safer...if he’s not here,” Bucky said. 

“That’s not why,” Sam said. “But...we’re all safe here. Together. Just so you know. This is a safe place. Nobody’s gonna hurt you.” He looked up at Tony. 

“Why are you looking at me?” Did they really need to go over just how many times he could have killed Barnes by now? 

Maybe he shouldn’t have spoken. Now Barnes was looking at him, too. He looked...scared. Like he expected Tony to go after him again. “Oh, don’t look at me like that!” he snapped. 

“Tony. We’re not gonna use tones of voice like that right now. It’s reasonable for him to be afraid of you.” 

“Afraid of me?” Now Tony was starting to get irritated. “He’s the one who broke my suit and left me in Siberia to die!” Bucky hung his head then, his face obscured by dark, lanky hair. 

“Tony.” Sam looked pissed, but his voice stayed pretty even. “That’s it. You lost your privileges to be in here.” 

“Oh, come on!” 

Thor took him gently by the arm. “Apologies, friend Anthony, but you have broken the rules friend Samuel set forward. Thus must I exile you from the laboratory for the time being.” As he spoke, he escorted Tony toward the nearest door. 

Tony yanked his arm away. “Oh, go exile yourself!” But he left. Better to do it on his own than be carried out the door by Magilla Gorilla. Of course, he practically ran to his workshop so as not to miss what was going on. He found Rhodey there, already watching on the security cam. 

“Smooth move, Ex lax.” Tony grabbed a smoothie out of the fridge and sat down. 

“Do you ever feel guilty about being the world’s cutest peeping tom?” Rhodey reached over and shoved him, motioning for Tony to be quiet. 

“Can’t I just go back to sleep?” Bucky was asking. 

“I’m sorry,” Sam said. “Not yet. Let’s talk a little first.” 

Bucky continued to hang his head. He looked like the girl from  _ The Ring _ ’s boyfriend. “About what?” 

“About you,” Sam said. “About Steve.” Bucky didn’t look too happy about it, and Tony hoped he was right. “But first, how about we get you a hot shower and some fresh clothes?” Bucky just shrugged. “You want some help? I know it’s hard to get those muscles going after you been frozen.” Tony didn’t think it was possible, but Bucky’s head drooped further. 

“I will help,” Thor volunteered, stepping forward. “Come, Squishy. Come, little Squishy.” He picked Bucky up in a gigantic bear hug and began to carry him from the room. 

“Uh...Thor?” You could almost see Sam deciding how best to handle both of them at once. Bucky needed calm, but Thor needed reining in. Hard. “Remember our talk about consent?” 

“Oh yes.” Thor paused, looked down at Bucky. “I’ve grown fond of you and wish to take care of you, little bear. Will you allow it?” 

“Fond?” Bucky croaked, looking at Thor through his hair like he was batshit crazy. 

“You are puny and cute. I wish to dress you and comb your hair. It reminds me of my brother’s.” 

“It’s…” For a minute, Tony really thought old Buckaroo was gonna tell the big guy to take a flying leap. But then what little fight there’d been seemed to go out of him. “Fine. It doesn’t matter.” 

“Excellent!” Thor beamed. “Come along, Squishy.” He carried Bucky from the room, pleased. 

“You ever wonder if we’re all just toy dolls to him?” Sam asked Bruce. Bruce was already busying himself tidying up the lab, putting it back as it had been--or as close to it as he could, considering the pod and all its cords and hoses were still there in the middle of it all.

“That’s not real,” Bruce said, sounding disinterested. 

“Come again?” 

“He’s not really like that,” Bruce said, preparing a slide for the microscope. 

“It does kinda seem like an act he puts on and takes off when it suits him.”

“Sometimes I wonder if the real him is something none of us could handle.”

“Like how?” Sam asked. 

Was it weird to be spying on someone else’s conversation like this?

“Something primal. Something ancient and immutable. Like the green guy.” He shrugged, as if he hadn’t just said something deep. “I think that might be why they get along.” 

“Interesting theory,” Sam said, thoughtful. 

Bruce had become distracted, looked up as though he’d forgotten Sam was still standing there. “Oh. Sure. I’m just gonna get back to work...no offense.” 

“None taken,” Sam said, backing away. “Thanks again for helping with this. I know it’s not your area of expertise.” 

Bruce shrugged. “At least super soldiers are human beings. My medical degree still applies.”

Sam nodded. “You wanna join all of us for dinner later?” 

“I don’t know,” Bruce said. “Maybe.” But Tony knew Bruce body language, and those hunched shoulders meant no. 

“Okay,” Sam said. “I’ll let you know.” As soon as Sam left the lab, Bruce turned to face the closed circuit camera. And held up his middle finger. In his own workroom, Tony laughed. 

“He knew we were watching?” Rhodey asked. 

“I feel like you should really know this about Bruce already, cupcake, but he’s kind of a genius. I mean, obviously not as much of a genius as I am, but still.” 

“You know what? I’m with Bruce.” Rhodey flipped him off, too. 

“Don’t make threats you can’t keep, Colonel.” 

“You wish.” 

“Maybe I do.” He leaned toward Rhodey, grinning devilishly.

“Tony, stop being creepy.” 

“But I just wanna love you, baby.” Tony reached over, rubbing his palms all over Rhodey’s close-cut hair. 

“Quit! Cut it--! I swear I’m gonna install rocket boots just so I can get away from you faster,” he said. 

Tony grinned. “The inspiration for progress comes in mysterious ways. And so do I.” 

“Oh, Go-- Tony!” He jumped up and plodded out of the workroom at top speed. Which was about 1 mph nowadays. But he was mobile, Tony reminded himself. Which was far better than the alternative. 


End file.
